The Truth Shall Set Us Free

I had an episode of sleep paralysis last February 8; I discussed it with Mom about it when we were having lunch a day after that. I asked her if she had experienced sleep paralysis because she's not the type of person who tells you everything unless you ask her to. So I asked her, she asked back. What is sleep paralysis? I chuckled a little. I told her what is it and I told her I felt something inside me was 'going out' every time I experience sleep paralysis. She suddenly remember her paranormal experience that happened a year before I was born. This has nothing to do about sleep paralysis; she just remembered her experience out of the blue. And I want to share it to YGS.

My Mom is the youngest with seven siblings. They weren't born rich. Only my aunt (the 7th), let's call her Aunt Lauren, was the only one who finished college in the family. Aunt Lauren was working in Japan when their father died some time in 1992. My Mom followed Aunt Lauren to Japan few months after his death to work as a singer. They lived together and this is where it began.

Mom comes home before dawn from work and Aunt would leave for work in the morning. So Mom was always alone all day. She felt being watched every time she's left alone in the apartment that they rent. She doesn't feel threatened, though she's naturally a scaredy-cat. She asked Aunt if she feels anything unusual when she's alone in the apartment, she answered no and thankfully, Aunt didn't ask further.

She'd often dream of her father sleeping beside her like he was sleeping as well. Sometimes, she would dream seeing his feet laying beside her head and her father's head was beside her feet. Sometimes, she dreamt that Grandpa was standing at the foot or at the side of her bed staring at her. And lastly, and the most terrifying was, she dreamt of her father lying across her body with the very same bed she's sleeping in. She would always feel scared every time she wakes up. Because, as I've said, she's a scaredy-cat that even her Dad is no exception. Even though she knows it was only a dream, it felt real.

At this point, I asked her why Grandpa visited her often in her dreams after she left our country. She knew the reason why. Grandma asked her not to tell Aunt that he died because they know she'd come home and it would cost so much money to come home and return to Japan. She endured Grandpa's visits for a year and it came to a point that she couldn't take it anymore. So she told Aunt the truth. They both cried. They mourned. Lit a candle, prayed for his soul and bid their final goodbye.

Few days after she told Aunt the truth, it was afternoon; Mom was tired cleaning the apartment and she instantly fell asleep on the couch right after she lied down. She dreamt of Grandpa kissing her forehead while she sleeps on that couch and left a letter and then left. She has never seen him again.